Winter Solstice
by Rye27
Summary: Post TWS: Seven years since I had heard anything of him, since I had seen him...and now his face exploded over the news. The time to repay old debts and get the red out of my ledger. Cover Image by Rye's Asylum.


**A:N: **This story ties into my X-men one called Fire Within. First time in a while I have been writing FF but I liked the movie a lot and love the comic books. Let me know how you like and don't forget to hit up Fire Within. Save the flames and just have a good time.

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**Chapter One**

My eyes held onto the man as he walked through the Smithsonian. I had been tracking him ever since SHIELD had been compromised and everything leaked onto the web. Drove out from Seattle just to pick him up. It hadn't been a pleasant trip either. At least it had been fairly uneventful. He was an asset that everyone wanted, rumors spilled over of Rogers being on the look out for him as well. Natural actions I suppose, to be searching for his best friend in the man that was a shadow of him. Only seemed like a matter of time before the shadow showed up to make an attempt at figuring out who he was on his own.  
At this moment I already knew I wasn't the only one watching the man rediscovering his past. There were at least a dozen wolves, circling, coming in for the kill. If they were to battle in here, more innocence would perish and I cringed at the idea.

I had to move quickly.

I watched from afar as he stepped into the Captain America room, his blue eyes held a confusion that I had once held to. The loss of memories, that frozen fear of not knowing who he was, trying to grasp to something that was still out of reach.

I didn't move a muscle as he neared the exhibit featuring his own photo. I could see him, not moving, just staring at the stillness of himself, reading the description that reflected before him. I wondered how shocking it was for him, if any memories rushed back to him. Whether or not he could believe all he saw that was before him, I hoped some part of him remembered though I knew it'd take a more than a single glance for him to grasp anything and realize who he had been.

And I couldn't wait any longer.

Now.

I walked forward and stood beside him. He didn't even acknowledge my presence, kept staring ahead at the words on the glass. I glanced to him, his long hair was tucked beneath his hat. I looked briefly back to the photo, smirking softly.

"They could of gotten a better photo," I told him and his icy gaze stared over at me but I just acted pointing between him and the photo. "Makes you look older," He began to shift, ready to run? Ready to try and kill me? I quickly reached forward to grip his metal hand, my eyes finally met his and he stared at them and I smiled softly. "Relax..." He stared at me still tense. "I am a friend."

"Why should I believe you?" He growled at me as my gaze drifted behind him. Circling circling circling. I slipped my arm into his looking up at him longingly, like a long lost lover would do when they found that special person. He stared down at me, his eyes showing no emotion as I knew him to be. Sad really, that Hydra had done such horrors to him. Well to everyone that they had gotten their filthy hands on. The short blonde woman that grasped onto his arm was no exception.

"You think you are the only experiment Hydra has?" I questioned as I shifted my eyes to glow a bright neon blue, I could see them reflect in his gaze. I began to walk. "Walk with me, we need to leave before anyone gets hurt."

"Do you think I will kill you?" He grumbled looking down at me as we began to walk together towards the exit. My arm moved to wrap around his waist. It was to push others from looking but to also check him. I was quite amazing he was unarmed but didn't mean anything since all I could feel was this area. Honestly not a bad thing to be feeling around but other things weighed in the balance.

"Put your arm around me," I instructed him and he did as I said. He was an expert assassin, he knew how to be invisible. "And no, I have no real fear of you killing me, I can help you and I plan to. We are not alone and I don't like causalities that don't need to be," I looked over at him, smiling softly. "I have a motorcycle prepped about a block east. Let's just head to the nearest..." I saw them, in front of us, their eyes narrowed on us as they went for their guns. "Hey look a window!"

I pulled on him, my strength a surprise for my size and he followed and the mangy beasts sprang their trap. He didn't argue with following me as I ran to the nearest window and exploded out of the splinters of glass, I turned quickly extending my hand to him as he followed me out the window. As soon as his hand gripped mine, with my other I shot an extension hook that latched to the side of the building, allowing our descent to be a tiny bit less painful.

We landed with a thud, my legs nearly gave out, couldn't let old injuries prevent our escape, I tugged quickly and he followed as I released him to run as fast as I could towards where I had parked my motorcycle. Gun shots rang out behind us, hailing a trail of bullet holes to riddle the ground. At least we had drawn them away from the crowds.

I didn't bother to yell at him as he followed willingly, whether to learn all he could from me or just get out of harms way, I did not particularly care. Just so long as I could prevent them from getting him. It was all I cared about. My bike came in sight and my feet almost seem not to touch the ground until we connected with the motorcycle. He jumped onto the front seat of the Harley and I raised an eyebrow.

"Seriously?" I questioned waving him back. "You're taking the bitch seat."

He glared at me but moved all the same as I climbed onto the front started it up and we were off. Speeding away, weaving in and out of traffic. We had to get to the outer edge of the city. He held onto me, his left arm a bit tighter than the right. The bionic arm. The men didn't try to pursue us as I nearly killed pedestrians trying to get away from them. At least that was working in my favor.

Or so I had thought, a bullet whizzed by my head and I turned to see several black suburbans with flashing lights come into view. Men hanging out the windows trying to take a pot luck shots at us.

"Hey!" I screamed glancing back him. His eyes were focused and ruthless. "The saddle bags!"

He nodded reaching in and retrieving two of the pistols in the bags and opened fire upon our pursuers. He was smart, taking out the tires first. The sound of the rubber popping and the car colliding with the nearest object made me smile. We weren't out of the line of fire yet.

It didn't take long with the eradicate driving to get to where I needed to be, and better yet it was unseen by whomever was after us. A cabin, not far from the city but far enough away to have a place to ditch the motorcycle. I drove it into the garage alongside a 1970 Charger. Quickly I shut the motorcycle off and jumped off it.

Without so much as a word he followed suit, walking around to the passenger side and getting in. It didn't take long to be out on the road again, heading south west, towards Texas. I had to admit though, it was far less entertaining than I thought it was going to be. A welcomed relief and I sighed happily before I looked over at him and my relief flooded away.

He held a gun towards me, on the seat so anyone who saw us would have thought he was just staring intensely at me. I think I would of preferred the staring. I raised an eyebrow at him and smirked at him.

"Well," I continued smirking under my breath. "Men usually buy me a drink or dinner before they pull a gun on me."

"Is everything that comes out of you sarcasm?" He questioned looking over his shoulder briefly.

He was making sure we weren't being followed. I knew we weren't, they were expecting a motorcycle not this beaut.

I shrugged. "Most of the time, yes," I smiled over at him. "Grow a sense of humor and we'll be fine or remember it, even better."

He tilted the gun up at me. "What do you know?"

"More than you," I hissed over at him. "My suggestion is that you just sit back and enjoy the ride."

"TELL ME!" He shouted at me his eyes narrowed.

"Shouting at me is not going to make me tell you jack," I growled at him, he pressed the gun to my temple. "Neither will threatening me."

"You've had training," He stated coldly.

"I use to be the same thing as you," I told him plainly. "A mercenary sent to due the bidding of the master. They didn't wipe my memories though. They did far worse, you don't remember me, but we worked together once, I told you then I'd help you if I could as I've told others and done so."

"You expect me to believe you?" He questioned with a low growl.

"You haven't pulled the trigger and you are still here with me," I told him softly looking straight at him. "We both know you can kill me and that you can escape, so why haven't you done either?"

He lowered the gun but still had it on me. "Who are you?"

I smirked not glancing to where my hand rested beside me on the seat while his eyes kept on mine. "A friend, best to not do formal introductions right now."

"And why's that?" As he finished the questioned my fingers dug into the space between the seats and quickly shoved a needle deep into his thigh.

Pressing down hard, releasing the amount needed as he pulled the trigger. I moved quickly knocking the gun out of his hand. He reached over and gripped my throat. It didn't even hurt, I glanced of at him as his head began to wang back and forth. I smiled as he fell into a deep sleep, leaning against the seat.

"Well drugging you right after an introduction might be considered rude," I smirked, knowing that he wouldn't be down for more than a day or two. At least it'd keep him from trying to do anything brash as we headed to our first destination to meet up with an old friend of mine.

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As much as I hated drugging him, it seemed the better option to have him unconscious than ready to shoot my head off at every passing glance and bend in the road. I didn't stop driving, save for gas and munchies, until we reached our destination. Lucky me, he hadn't awaken during the whole drive, but he was starting to stir. Had to get to the Hilton and fast, at least with him starting to wake he'd be able to walk a bit by himself. Still too grudgy to place where he was or what was happening, I didn't think he'd try to kill me, in that state at least.

I parked in the parking structure and quietly lifted him, slinging and arm over my shoulder as we moved quietly to the receptionist, I looked up at the young woman who raised an eyebrow. I was quite happy it was late in the evening when we arrived and I smiled at the woman behind the counter.

"Hey," I began. "I have a reservation," I reached into my pocket and pulled out an drivers license, fake of course but it read real enough. "Wilson, Wanda," She glanced at the man I held up puzzled. "My hubby had a bit too much this evening. Any way to hurry this up?"

She nodded handing me back the id and the room key, directing me towards the elevator. I smiled, nodding as I helped the sleepy mad man to the elevator and then managed to get him into the room.

The room wasn't too large but he at least put me in a better suite than the last time I met up to get information from him.

Setting the bionic man on the bed, I moved over to the fridge and grabbed a water from it. He was coming too rather quickly. Too quickly for my likening but I didn't expect the syrum to work for so long. I leaned against the counter and sipped quietly on the water. Then I heard it, his footsteps, fast, and I looked to him as he gripped my throat and tossed me carelessly into the wall.

I cried out, being caught off guard, standing quickly though I turned ready to fight but I couldn't overwhelm him. If I did, I feared what kind of mental damage would occur. His metal arm flew to my throat and I closed my eyes as he lifted my body off the ground. My hands gripped onto his as I stared down at him. His eyes were full of rage, an inhuman rage, one brought on by nearly seventy years of torturous tests. I shook my head trying to speak but he crushed down upon my throat.

Kicking him hard in the face, I let some of my strength seep out and he let go of me. I coughed hard before I shouted at him to stop. His bionic arm barely missed my head and hit the floor with a loud thud, cracking the concrete beneath it.

"I need you to relax," I told him softly as he came at me for another swing. I blocked his advance easily but his strength was far more than I imagined. "Bucky!" I called but he took another swing sending me hurtling back into the couch. He leaped, kneeling over me ready to deliver another menacing blow when I screamed; "JAMES!"

He stopped, mid-swing, his fist inches from my face and I reached up touching his chest. His heart was racing, this wasn't like him, he was cold, he was in the middle of a terror, brought on by his sleep. PTSD in it's finest form.

"I'm sorry I had to drug you," I whispered sitting up a bit, bringing my face closer to his. "I needed to get us here quickly and worrying about you going bat shit on me was not priority!"

"Where are we?"

"El Paso," I told him softly.

"Why?"

"Someone is bringing me information and asked me to meet him here," I told him as he began to relax. "I am not going to hurt you or drug you again."

He reached down gripping the collar of my shirt and pulled me up. "Do that again and I will kill you," He released me and I straightened out my shirt so my breasts weren't popping out so much. "Explain to me how a woman of your height and build kicks so goddamn hard?"

"You have been gone a long time," I stated getting off the floor . "Don't try to learn everything in one day."

"If I don't lear-"

"If you learn too much too quickly it could do more damage than good," I turned to him, leaning against the wall. He stared at me, whether it was curiousity or annoyance I couldn't tell. "Personal reasons, don't worry, we won't be here more than a day," He stared at me, concern in his gace. "Don't worry, we're off the map enough to not draw attention from anyone."

"Why all the smoke and mirrors?"

I raised an eyebrow at him. "Seriously? I am taking heat from one of the best assassins in the world?"

"Do you ever just answer questions with answers and not questions?"

"Ask the right questions," I told him walking past him towards the fridge as he reached over and grabbed my arm causing me to stop.

He turned his head to look into my eyes and I looked up into his. "What's your name?"

I smiled softly. "Saya."

"Japanese?"

I understood his confusion, I was mostly Irish with some English and German. I wasn't tall and I enjoyed it for the most part. With blonde hair that almost had highlights of natural red that nearly reach my backside but I kept it tied up in a ponytail. My big blue eyes were the colors of sapphires and they caught attention a good portion of the time. Unwanted attention, led me to wearing sun glasses nearly every day.

"My adoptive parents were," I told him. "They brought me into their home and renamed me that. However you may know me as Lilith," The blank look in his eyes told me enough and I didn't push the subject. "I'd prefer Saya."

"Why Lilith?"

He dropped his hand and I lowered my eyes, slightly shamed by the question. I did not enjoy my origin. "I was given the code name, it's the name of a demon in Hebrew myth," I flashed my bright neon eyes to him. "My elder sister, my brother and I shared these eyes."

I walked to get a water and he persisted. "I thought you were adopted."

"Hydra showed me them," I continued drinking the cool liquid. "They were killed, both my siblings and my parents, biological and adoptive. Miracles is what they call us. Blame the fox stuck in it's hole for the nicer term...miracles. Blessed with a shift in our genetic structure to make us more individualized. Unique creatures with unique abilities."

I turned looking to him, my eyes still the neon blue, I opened my mouth hissing, feeling my canine teeth growing longer, my nails became harder, more pointed, claws, deadly and sharp. I focused on him as he stared at me as I changed before him. While it was a minor change, I didn't want to show more than I had to.

"If this is all you-"

"I can see heat," I told him, then in a split second, I was no longer across the room, but behind him and I tossed him onto the bed with ease. "And I am stronger and faster than you..." Before he could get to his feet I landed on top of him, straddling him and pinning his normal arm and his metal above his head. He stared up at me, I could see all the gears grinding for him to fight me. "Breath James," I whispered to him softly, my other hand went to his chest. "Calm..." His labored breathing from going on the defense shifted slowly and I watched as his gaze turned from one of attack to one of curiosity as I released him. "This is how I look normally. If you don't mind while I am around you at least let my eyes remain this way. It's quite painful to keep them hidden."

My nails retracted as he questioned me. "If you are so fast why not show this earlier? When we escaped the museum?"

"Because it has its limits," I told him softly rolling off to the side of him. "The speed only comes in short sprints, the strength stays but it becomes painful after only a few hours so I learned how to make it dormant. It was a fail safe. Hydra injected a serum into my body to prevent me from having full access to my abilities. The pain becomes too much and I fall into a coma."

"Why would the put a limit on it?"

I rolled away, sat up and lifted the back of my shirt, revealing the horrifying scars from bullets that had wrought my body. "I had a nasty habit of trying to escape," I shuddered as his cold metal hand touched one of the seven scars that I bore. I glanced over my shoulder at him. He stared intensely at the scars. "And a nastier habit of killing many on my way out."

"Why?"

I closed my eyes, images of my parents, my siblings, their blood. I shook my head pulling the shirt back down. "Another time," I felt a breeze cross my face and I looked to the now opened window. "We have company."

He sat up and looked around the room.

"Does Lilith have a new play thing?" I heard his voice coming from the kitchen. I turned and stared at the man in red and black. "I will grant you, you have good taste...at picking a nuke ready to go off!"

"Shut it Wade," I grumbled at the mercenary who was invading my liquor stash. "You better leave money for that shit," I hissed at him. "Last time I met up with you I ended up with a three hundred dollar tab."

Bucky stared at the masked man and I waved him down.

I couldn't blame him for being on edge, even I was on edge around Wade. Wade Wilson, code name, Deadpool. He was a psychotic maniac with a natural talent for all things illegal. He wore a full body suit of red and black not really as a statement but to cover his scarred appearance. He once had cancer but was offered a way out, a serum to give him a healing factor. It backfired and nearly killed him and scarred his entire body. On his death bed the healing factor kicked in and also did a number on his personality. Honestly he was more of a loose cannon than Bucky was in my opinion.

Sarcasm with a gun though he preferred the swords. Not someone anyone could when against. Well not fairly anyway.

"Ooooohhhhhhh..." He sneered at me jumping over and putting his arm around me. "Well you still haven't paid me for my information yet, I could always just leave without giving you," He flashed the large envelope in front of my face but with ease I took it. I could see him pouting through that ridiculous mask of his. "Come on!" I walked towards Bucky as I looked through the file. It was his. Hydra's information on him, KGB's and anyone else I could get Wade to get his hands on. "It took a lot of effort to get that!" I raised an eyebrow at him looking up briefly from the files. "Okay minimal effort but you could at least make it look like I had a chance at kicking your ass."

"You are the only one who really does," I hissed at him as I reached down under the bed and pulled out a stack of bills and tossed it at him. "I'd say this should shut you up but we both know that's impossible."

He cackled at me and Bucky just looked confused. "I must say the boy must be something special if you are showing off those pretty blues of yours, Saya."  
I glared over at him. "Remember what happened last time you pissed me off?"

"But I piss you off whenever you see me," He chortled at me back flipping out the window. "Auevor!"

I shook my head, rubbing my temple as Bucky questioned; "Who was that?"

"That was Wade Wilson," I grumbled softly looking back at the files. "I highly recommend never using him or teaming up with him ever. He'll betray you in a heart beat if the money is good enough."

"So why do you trust him?"

"I have known him for a while, he knows better than to fuck me over," I glanced up from the files and Bucky seemed confused again. "After he crossed me on a job I put him in a steel box and sent him to the bottom of Lake Superior for a bit."

"Obviously he got out," Bucky pointed out moving to shut the door to the patio.

"I let him out," I told him sitting on the edge of the bed. "Once he's loyal to you he's a good boy. But it takes a long time for him to even get to that point and there's no guarantee he'll stay that way for long. He's a little..."

"Insane?"

"I was going to say mentally unstable but you can say that if you want to be quick and sweet," I told him as he hovered above me, trying to see what I was staring at. "It's yours if that's what you are trying to see."

"Then why not let me see it?" He growled at me. His gaze was stern, I had something he wanted and he'd break me to get to it.

"In time," I told him and his metal hand flew to my throat. My gaze glowed more as I became annoyed. It was good he was showing such a want to find his past, but I knew how it was to have your entire past dumped on you and you have no idea what's truly happening because you are trying to process everything so quickly it's maddening. "James..."

His glare stayed and he squeezed as I said his name. "Why the hell should I trust you? You could be working for the men who made me this monster. Give me a damn good reason why I shouldn't snap your neck right now just to get the information I want."

"Because with me you can get revenge on the men who did this to you and help others escape their clutches," I told him sternly. "You can kill me if you want but that's not the man you want to be. You want to remember who," I held the file up. "This man was before they took him. I have been where you are now, questioning who I was with no memory and they thrust those memories on me by my asking and it is more damaging than anything to remember everything like that. I may not have your strength but I only do things this way based on my experience," I pushed up so I was standing, his metal hand still at my throat. "You and I were both made monsters, you were once a hero to this nation, I believe you want that again, because the man you were would hate what they have made you. Which is why you haven't killed me."

He stared at me, his cold eyes were still harsh and stared at me in anger but his hand went a bit lax, slowly moving to hang at his side and he closed his eye and stared down at the floor. I leaned forward and rested my head on his chest. He shifted at the touch.  
"Why help me?" He questioned softly, his head hanged by my ear.

"Because you need someone," I replied softly turning so we were looking out of the corners of our eyes at one another. "It may be me, it may not be, but I will be here for you," He pulled away a bit to regard my composure at the statement. "Get some rest. We won't be stopping tomorrow and it's a long drive."

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**A:N: L**et me know what you think and don't forget to hit Fire Within :D Thanks ya'll for reading.


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